1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a lighting system such as suspended beneath a ceiling of an enclosure and incorporating fluorescent tubes as a light source.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior lighting systems usually employ elongated or rectangular metal fixtures positioned on a ceiling or suspended therebelow and incorporating fluorescent tubes and the ballasts necessary for the operation thereof. Such systems have also been utilzed to support a plurality of spaced incandescent or similar light sources. See for example U.S. Pats. Nos. 3,504,172, 4,109,305, and 4,420,798.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,504,172 discloses a grid section of metal fixtures incorporating a plurality of individual light units.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,109,305 discloses elongated metal boxes and a support frame therefor hidden in or above a decorative ceiling and utilizes fluorescent tubes as a light source.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,420,798 discloses cross sectionally circular extruded aluminum fixtures in which fluorescent tubes are positioned with novel hanger elements engaging the sides and ends of the extruded shapes so that they can be joined in a grid-like arrangement.
The present invention eliminates the cumbersome, relatively heavy, expensive metal fixtures and forms a tubular overhead lighting system in many configurations utilizing plastic pipe and plastic fittings connecting several sections of the plastic pipe to one another. Fluorescent tubes and their ballasts are positioned in the plastic pipe which is slotted to desirably direct the light downwardly, upwardly, or sidewardly as the case may be.